Shadespire: So, you want to build a deck?

Hopefully you’re all up to date with our Shadespire coverage. If not, you can find a handy primer on the game here as well as our mini-review here.

Let’s assume that you are up to speed with the steam train that is Warhammer Underworlds: Shadespire. We figured we’d throw together a few handy points for building a deck. So get your card sleeves ready and start thinking about how you want to grab those glory points!

Firstly, let’s get something straight. There’s no strictly right or wrong way to build a deck for Shadespire. There’s some formula that makes more sense than others but nothing is in stone. With this being a card game as well as relying on dice, the odds are never truly set. I won’t say there’s a guaranteed way to win but there’s some key things you can remember that will help.

The first thing you need to do is pick a Warband. The current ones available are Stormcast Eternals, Garrek’s Bloodreavers, Sepulchral Guard and Ironskull’s Boyz. You should go with the Warband you think is the coolest or you’d have the most fun playing. They are fairly diverse and each have their own traits and styles so be sure to research plenty.

I’d assume the Stormcast Eternals to be the popular Warband off the bat. But then, the Orruk models all look fantastic!

Now, let’s get to the cards themselves and what can help you build a fairly solid deck. One of the key things is you want to decide on a style of play for your Warband and then stick to it. If you’re going to focus on playing defensively and rely on adjacent supports then keep this in mind with your cards. Don’t get loads of cards that help you move really far if you’re going to keep everyone clustered together. This would work good for the smaller, more resilient Warbands like Ironjaw’s Boyz, despite it being particularly non-Orky.

With this be sure to remember it when building both your Objective Cards and your Power Cards. The two should go hand in hand and mesh consistently. For instance, if you want your Stormcast to focus on capturing objectives then have Objective Cards that correspond to this. With that sorted, then consider Power Cards to help this, perhaps some that put you on Guard? Maybe some that stop your enemies from being able to push you off the objective? Alternatively if you’re looking to have a Warband that charges into fights then get some nice, gory cards. You’ll want Objective Cards that score you Glory Points for kills or damage so that you can achieve victory swiftly.

This is crucial especially in the first action phase where early Glory Points can help to decide the game. You want Glory Points to spend quickly to upgrade the fighters you have to make them hard hitters for the future rounds. So consider making a good chunk of your cards Glory Point scorers through immediate actions. These can include defeating an enemy fighter or achieving a certain amount of charges in a phase, for example.

The Sepulchral Guard seem to offer a unique challenge to both those who play with them and against them. I foresee some fun and varied decks getting built for these guys.

The above video provides some further insight into deck-building from staff at Games Workshop. But let’s not forget the hard-set rules to building a deck. It’s advised you use 20 Power Cards and have 12 Objective Cards in your deck. More Power Cards simply means you’re less likely to get a hold of the specific card you want. No more than half of the Power Cards can be Ploys and they all must be unique. So as a starting point you want to have 10 Ploy Cards, 10 Upgrade Cards and 12 Objective Cards. Read them all carefully and be sure to remember how you want to play your Warband and acquire those Glory Points; especially in the first action phase of the game!

We’ll be bringing you more information on Shadespire and the possibilities it brings in the future. For instance, head on over to see our thoughts on the Sepulchral Guard decks that are possible!

See you in the City of Mirrors, folks. Until then, feel free to pop by our Facebook for regular updates and news!

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